Enjoy Spring in Achi, Nagano

Discover a Village full of Colorful Trees and Brilliant Skies

Achi, Nagano at night. All photos reprinted with permission from Achi Tourist Department

I have to admit this beautiful spring morning should be Valentine’s as I walk with my honey under the colorful trees of white, pink, and red. This date offers more variety than our previous ones, where we enjoyed the cherry blossoms.

The feeling does not limit itself to the morning under the peach trees. At night, we snuggle together as we take in the star-filled skies. We visit a small hamlet in Nagano, near the Gifu border, called Achi.

Couples are not the only ones to relish in Achi’s claims to fame — peach tree blossoms and stargazing. Families and people of all ages come to enjoy this little town.

Like those other people, come and visit Achi in the spring to see colorful trees, after the Cherry Blossoms have long passed, as well as an out-of-this-world experience.

Peach trees at the Peach Tree Strip

By early April, many places across Japan have already experienced the cherry blossom season. However, because Nagano has a cooler climate, they can bloom as late as mid-April. Once those trees have peaked and the petals have withered away, in Nagano, you can still enjoy beautiful trees, as Achi’s peach tree flowers are famous.

The peach trees bloom later. The trees bloom as late as Golden Week. Achi is a wonderful spring break getaway. You can take in more beautiful trees during your long holiday.

Koinobori and peach blossoms

Achi used to have no peach trees. In 1922, some seeds from Germany arrived, and a local planted them. They continued to plant them, and gradually the number of trees grew.

Today, there are over 10.000 peach trees in Achi. Hanamomo Kaido (the Peach Tree Strip), which is Route 256, has about 5,000 of them. Along that road, there are at least 6 viewing spots where you can stop, take pictures, and walk under the beautiful trees.

The night show at Achi

While the Peach Tree Strip is a popular reason to visit Achi, its most famous reason is the starry skies above. Every night, this sleepy hamlet awakens as people flock to it to see the best skies in Japan and have an out-of-this-world experience.

Because the village is remote, the skies are brilliant. The nearest urban area is Iida, Nagano, 50 kilometers away, and the nearest major city, Nagoya, is 110 kilometers away. In the hills above the village and in a nearby forest park, where light pollution is nearly nonexistent, people attend shows that explain what you can see in the heavens above.

The main show takes place at Fujimidai Highlands Heavens Sonohara. At an elevation of 1,400 meters, you have to take a ropeway up to the show.

At 8 pm, a dazzling star show takes place. All lights at the nearby facility go off to make the sky as dark as possible. A guide explains everything you can see in the heavens above and uses a laser to point out the objects in the sky.

Since the show takes place year-round, the constellations follow the seasons. If you are lucky, you can see planets, satellites, nebulae, or even a meteor shower.

Enjoying hte show

To enjoy the show better, be sure to bring a sheet to sit on and some cold-weather gear, as it is much colder on the mountain top than down in the town below.

Also, be sure to catch the gondola in plenty of time. It starts running at 5 pm, and the last one goes at 7:30 pm. It takes fifteen minutes and climbs 2,500 meters. If you take one of the earlier gondolas, you can pass the time in the nearby restaurant that serves cosmic flavors or the gift shop that sells far-out gifts. At the same time, you can bring your own food and have a picnic before the show.

The gondola going to the top

The star show takes place all year, as long as the gondolas run. However, if the weather does not cooperate, they move the show indoors and explain to participants what they should be able to see in the night sky.

The brightness of a full moon or clouds can also diminish viewing. Therefore, the best time to go is on a clear night with a waxing moon. That means winter offers the best skies, but April to October are the most popular months to visit.

Namiai Starry PSky Park at night

You do not have to watch the show on the mountain top. Instead, you can watch the show from the forest at the Namiai Starry Sky Park.

This tour has a more educational component to it, and takes place on a wooded deck attached to a building with a bakery and an educational exhibit about the night skies in general.

Even though the facilities pale in comparison to the mountain top, the show in the woods has a better chance of offering an English tour.

In spring, as the weather warms up, Achi in Nagano is the place to experience it. If, like so many other living things, you have romantic feelings at that time, a date to Achi strengthens the bond. If not, by yourself or with family, it offers you a getaway full of memories that last forever, as the stars and the trees leave lasting impressions.

During the day, you can take in all the colors of the trees, and at night, observe the heavens above. What could be more divine for a vacation?

The night sky pver Achi